Zionist Federation News

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

The ZF would like to join Israel and the world-wide Jewish family in expressing our heart-break and anguish at the news that the bodies of Eyal Yifrach, Gil-ad Shaar and Naftali Fraenkel have been found. Like everyone in our community, we had hoped and prayed that the three teenagers would be returned safe and sound to their families. Tragically, we know now that this was never to be.

We welcome David Cameron’s swift and accurate description of the murders as an “appalling and inexcusable act of terror.” We hope that he will make good on his promise to “stand with Israel as it seeks to bring to justice those responsible.” Specifically, he should unequivocally condemn the Unity Government between Fatah and Hamas, which bears responsibility for this barbaric act. The Department for International Development must also seriously consider withholding funding to the Palestinian Authority until it agrees to cancel the policy of automatically putting such murderers on its payroll if and when they are found and convicted.

Alan Aziz, ZF Director, commented:

“There are no words to describe the anguish that the families of Eyal Yifrach, Gil-ad Shaar and Naftali Fraenkel must be feeling. For the last few weeks, we have seen the global Jewish community come together to raise the plight of the missing teens, and we must remain united in our fight against the terrorism that targets our children. Mahmoud Abbas should now both sever ties with Hamas and strike off the legislation that would otherwise automatically make these vicious murderers salaried members of the Palestinian civil service. Unless he is willing to do this, David Cameron must cease using UK taxpayer money to fund a government that is clearly opposed to peace.”

Friday, March 21, 2014

The ZF this week called on Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to re-double his efforts to find a satisfactory
conclusion to the current labour dispute with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MFA). In an open letter to the PM, the ZF cites the “tireless work” of the
Israeli Embassy in the UK,
work which is “crucial” for the promotion and defence of the Jewish state in
one of the most influential arenas in the world.

The letter is co-signed by a variety of
groups and individuals, including Christian Friends of Israel and Lord Palmer
of Childs Hill, who describe themselves as being “proud and privileged” to work
alongside the diplomats in the Embassy, including in “vital” outreach to
numerous cultural and political groups.

ZF Chairman Paul Charney also criticised
those organisations that had failed to co-sign the letter:

“At a time
when the delegitimisation campaign poses an increasing threat not just to Israel
but to the Diaspora, it’s a real shame that community organisations are
unwilling to back this letter, which endorses the tremendous work the embassy
does. All of these organisations state they support Israel, and many argue that they
should still be free to critique the actions of the Israeli government –
backing this letter would give them the perfect opportunity to do both.”

The full text of the letter, alongside
co-signers, is below.

Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

As organisations and individuals committed
to working to advance the interests and understanding of Israel here in the
United Kingdom, we are writing to convey the importance of the work of the
Israeli Embassy and its diplomats here in Britain.

As you will be aware, the United Kingdom is an important arena for Israel. As a
member of the Security Council, NATO, the G8 and other international bodies, it
is of key strategic importance, while as Israel's second largest trading
partner it carries considerable economic weight. Moreover, with BBC and other
world media based in London, it has a
disproportionate impact on the perception of Israel
and the Middle East throughout the world.

In all these fields, the tireless work of Israel's diplomats is absolutely crucial to
protecting and advancing the cause of Israel. We are proud and privileged
to work alongside them and to witness their tireless commitment to representing
Israel in every arena, from
briefing the country's most influential leadership and appearing on the media,
to travelling the length and breadth of Britain to speak at often hostile
university campuses, union meetings and faith and cultural groups. We have also
been pleased to partner with them in important outreach programs increasing
understanding of Israel
through culture, innovation, and education.

Without wishing to become involved in
internal labour disputes, we consider it important that you know what vital
work Israel's
representatives are doing on a daily basis. We urge you to use all your efforts
to ensure that this crucial work can continue.

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

The ZF today slammed the decision by UNESCO to cancel a
scheduled exhibition on the historic connection between Israel and the
Jewish nation as a ‘dismal capitulation.’ The exhibition, titled “The People,
the Book, the Land — 3,500 years of ties between the Jewish people and the Land
of Israel,” was, after several years of preparation
and research by the Simon Wiesenthal Center, scheduled to open this week –
until it was shelved at the behest of the 22 members of the Arab Group.

ZF chairman Paul Charney
elaborates

“The decision by UNESCO – a body that purports to be
concerned with educational, scientific and cultural matters – to cancel the
exhibition is both a dismal capitulation and nakedly political. To shelve an
exhibition after invites have been sent out is grossly insulting to all those
who spent years preparing it. But the reason, and reasoning, behind the
shelving goes beyond bad manners. It provides us with a microcosm of the
Israeli-Arab conflict. The official explanation given was that the Arab members
were concerned that the subject matter might harm the chance of a successful outcome
to the current peace talks. The opposite is true – the acceptance by Palestinians
and the Arab world in general that Israel
is not a foreign body, but the legitimate expression of the Jewish nation’s
longstanding connection to the land
of Israel, is crucial to
peace. But instead of defending its principles, the UN is once again paralysed
between those unwilling to stand up for Israel in case they rock the boat, and
those that just want to throw Israel off the boat altogether. It’s particularly
striking given that the UN has just declared 2014 a year of solidarity with the
Palestinians – with nary a word about the risk of partiality."

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

The ZF joins Israel in commemorating the memory of
Ariel Sharon, her former Prime Minister, who passed away this weekend at the age
of 85. Described by Ben Gurion as ‘the greatest field commander,’ nicknamed in
the Knesset as ‘the bulldozer,’ and perhaps best defined by the title of his
autobiography, ‘Warrior,’ Sharon was an indomitable force both on and off
the battlefield. Born in the yishuv of Mandate-era Palestine in 1928, the chronology of his achievements is in
many ways the history of Israel and the defence of the Jewish
national home.

From engineering Israel’s lightning victory in the Six Day War, to
turning the tide during the Yom Kippur War, to overseeing the security measures
against the Second Intifada, Sharon earned a reputation as a bold and
brilliant strategic mind, willing to make tough decisions when the fledgling
country could not afford the luxury of failure. His time as a politician was no
less noteworthy, with his unilateral disengagement from Gaza showcasing his ability
to pursue a resolution to conflict, even in the absence of a viable peace
partner.

Paul
Charney, ZF Chairman:

“All Israelis and Zionists owe Ariel Sharon a huge debt.
The history of his life is an effective reminder that the struggle for Zionism -
a national home for the Jewish people - was not completed in 1948 with the
establishment of the state of Israel. Instead, it required the
ingenuity of military leaders like Sharon, as well as the staunch courage and
commitment of Israelis soldiers, to defend the state from the threats ranged
against her, from massed Arab armies on her borders, to Palestinian terrorists
targeting her civilians. While both his military and political careers aroused
controversy and prompted criticism from the left and right of the political
spectrum, the legacy of Ariel Sharon will remain his single-minded yet pragmatic
commitment to the survival of Israel.”

Friday, January 10, 2014

“There should be no question that the quenelle is a
symbol of pure hatred against the Jewish people. It was invented and popularised
by a man, Dieudonné M’bala M’bala, whose entire raison d'être appears to consist
of ridiculing and denigrating the memory of the 6 million Jewish men, women, and
children murdered during the Holocaust. Its design as an inverted fascist salute
enables its supporters to indulge themselves in the sickening thrill of publicly
mocking the historic persecution of Jews, albeit in the most cowardly way
imaginable. And of course, the defence that the symbol is merely against ‘the
system’ or ‘the establishment’ is no defence either, since it implicitly
promotes the idea that Jews are intrinsically part of whatever political order
is being challenged at the time, therefore propagating the anti-Semitic myth of
Jewish global domination.”

Monday, January 6, 2014

The ZF condemns the BBC for broadcasting a sketch that
not only propogates the oldest and most baseless stereotypes about Israelis,
but also ridicules anti-Semitism at a time when anti-Jewish bigotry is on the
rise.

BBC 3’s ‘The Revolution Will Be Televised’ programme,
broadcast in December, included a candid camera sketch where the presenters
dress up as workmen and pretend to be representatives for the Israeli Embassy.
The presenters then begin informing local property owners that the embassy is
taking their land for a variety of spurious reasons – mocking Israel for its
supposedly expansionist policies.

The satirical explanations given to the members of the
public perpetrate the oldest stereotypes about Israel’s alleged attempts to
justify its supposedly illegitimate presence in the Middle East: “Before it was
your land it was our land, so we are really going to take what was rightfully
ours,” “This is our land that was given to us by the Almighty,” and “We’ve been
doing it for years.”

Given that such one-sided and prejudiced portrayals of
Israel contribute to anti-Jewish bigotry, perhaps the most shocking aspect of
the programme is the open ridiculing of complaints about anti-Semitism. When one
member of the public expresses amusement at the situation, a presenter tells
him: “I’m finding that smile a bit anti-Semitic… so I think you should really
wipe it off your face” - suggesting that anti-Semitism is not a valid concern.
It is hard to imagine that the BBC would allow racism against another minority
group to treated in this way.

ZF Chairman Paul Charney added:

“No doubt the makers of ‘The Revolution Will be
Televised” thought they were being tremendously edgy and brave, mocking Israel
by suggesting it takes land with impunity. Instead, they simply pandered to the
prejudices of those who believe that the less-than-one-percent of the Middle
East which is devoted to Jewish national self-determination is still too
much.

“This biased viewpoint would be woefully inaccurate at
the best of times, but it seems especially egregious given that Israel is not
only currently negotiating with the express desire of ceding land to the
Palestinians, but continues to release convicted murderers just to keep them at
the negotiating table. But I’m sure the makers of this programme will turn their
sights on Israel ’s neighbours soon enough. The PA’s glorification of
terrorists? The collapse of democracy in Egypt ? Syria ’s civil war? Or maybe
the lack of human rights in the rest of the Middle East just isn’t that much of
a laughing matter?”

Thursday, November 28, 2013

The ZF today expresses its gravest reservations about
the Iranian nuclear deal recently struck in Geneva . The deal, brokered on
behalf of the P5+1 countries, has been widely hailed as a major breakthrough in
the long-running standoff over Iran ’s nuclear programme. However, by offering
to reduce the level of sanctions without gaining corresponding cast-iron
guarantees that the nuclear programme is only intended for civilian usage, the
international community has let Iran off the hook. Apparently desperate to
believe in the moderation of Hassan Rouhani, Western negotiators have now eased
the pressure on a regime that has a track record of duplicity and misdirection,
is currently knee-deep in Syrian blood, and might well soon trigger a nuclear
arms race in the most volatile region on the planet.

Failure to dismantle the infrastructure for
war

The main problem of the negotiations is the failure to
address Iranian facilities that are clearly designed for the development of
nuclear weapons. Under the Geneva deal, Tehran will be allowed to keep both its
heavy water reactor in Arak and thousands of centrifuges – key elements for
military, not civilian, nuclear production.

The threat of duplicity

The Iranian regime has a track record of duplicity over
its nuclear programme, and there is a very real threat that the easing of
sanctions will provide it with the cover it needs to complete a nuclear weapon.
Iran could easily follow in the footsteps of North Korea , surreptitiously
continuing its programme until it had reached the point of no return.

The reality of the Ayatollah’s
regime

Despite the charm offensive of Hassan Rouhani, Iran is
still the same state it has been since 1979– a reactionary, messianic theocracy
under the total control of the Ayatollahs. This Islamist regime shares the
ideology of the radical extremists who commit terrorist atrocities across the
globe, and has no regard for democracy or human rights. Those seeking proof of
the reality of Tehran ’s ambitions and ruthlessness should look no further than
Syria , where Iranian expertise, weapons and soldiers have played a central role
in the brutal massacring of the civilian population.

The catastrophic implications of a nuclear
bomb

There must be no misunderstanding the seriousness of
Iran procuring a nuclear weapon. Should this worst-case scenario occur, it would
most likely trigger an arms race in the Middle East . The nuclear brinksmanship
between the US and the Soviet Union was arguably the most dangerous period in
humanity’s history; for it to be repeated in this volatile and unstable part of
the world would be a global catastrophe. Additionally, a nuclear Tehran
represents a unique threat to Israel , given the frequent and shameless calls
for the annihilation of the Jewish state made by the Iranian
leadership.